SAN MARCOS  A 106-unit affordable housing apartment complex is under construction in the Richmar neighborhood of San Marcos, the fourth housing project in more than a decade by National Community Renaissance, which is working with the city to help revitalize the once drug and violence-adled community.

The first phase of construction for the project, called Westlake Village, includes 49 rental units, 6,100 square-feet of retail and commercial space, and an extension of Westlake Drive to Autumn Drive. Work on the first phase will wrap up in May. The second phase, which includes 57 rental units, is set to be completed in December.

John Taylor, assistant vice president of construction with the company, also called National CORE, said the project, at 405 Autumn Drive, also includes a preschool and an after school program.

The grand opening for the project, estimated at around $40 million, is set for March 2014.

The San Marcos City Council approved the project in March 2010, agreeing to lend $17 million of redevelopment funds to the project. The money was lent to the company at the beginning of the project and has already been committed, even though redevelopment agencies have since dissolved,

National CORE is bringing in $22 million to $25 million of private sector money to make up the remaining balance.

Rents at the complex are broken down by bedroom sizes and income levels. One-bedroom units run between $413 to $865, two bedrooms from $493 to $1,035, and three bedrooms from $568 to $1,195.

“The rents here are 15 to 20 percent below market and they’re affordable in perpetuity. They’re not going to go to market, ever,” said John Seymour, vice president of acquisitions and forward planning with National CORE.

The first National CORE project in the neighborhood was the renovation of the 136-unit Villa Serena apartments, formerly the Lido-Imperial apartments, at 340 Marcos St. in 2000.

“I remember when we closed escrow on it there was a gang shooting and the kid died. Right on the corner, gunned down. That’s how bad it was back then,” Seymour said. “Ever since that time the city has been working with a number of developers to totally revitalize the neighborhood and to bring in working families (and) get them good housing.”

San Marcos sheriff’s Lt. Mike McClain has said the Richmar neighborhood, the second-oldest in the city, used to be the No. 1 crime area for the department’s entire command. City officials have noted that the city first turned its focus to the Richmar neighborhood in the early 1990s, establishing redevelopment project areas to reduce crime and revitalize neighborhoods.

In 2003, National CORE worked on its first new construction project in Richmar, Plaza del Paseo, a mixed-use project on West Mission Road with 120 multifamily units and 23,000 square feet of retail space.

The company also owns the 192-unit Sierra Vista apartments, at 422 Los Vallecitos Blvd.

Seymour said that along with building the complexes, the company also manages them, with employees living on site.

“That way we get strict control,” he said.

In all the company controls about 600 rental units in the neighborhood.

Rental applicants undergo screening, including three credit checks, a criminal-background check, reference letters from their previous landlord, and third-party verification from their employer. Applicants must also have a good employment history, good credit score, and a valid checking or savings account.

Currently about 2.500 people are on a waiting list for the four properties plus a fifth one the company owns in a different neighborhood.